Flexible learning options (FLOs) that provide access to secondary education for marginalised students tend to sit on the margins of education systems, resulting in pressure to account for their outcomes. This paper employs a conceptual framework based on possible selves theory applied to interview data with students and staff from eight Australian…

This study investigates the order of examples and problems in example-based learning, a pedagogical approach that provides learners with step-by-step solutions to new problems early in the learning process. Worked examples have been found to be very effective when combined with open problems, mostly in well-structured topics. Despite extensive…

This study examined 57 learners' emotions (i.e., joy, anger, confusion, frustration) as they engaged with scientific content while learning about microbiology with Crystal Island, a game-based learning environment (GBLE). Measures of learners' prior knowledge, in-game text comprehension, facial expressions of emotion, and posttest reading…

Cognitive load theory's incorporation of evolutionary perspectives has generated several instructional designs based on movement, including the tracing effect, occurring when learners benefit from explicit instructions to trace out specific elements of lesson materials with the index finger. Historical descriptions of children's tracing behaviours…

Inquiry learning is an effective learning approach if learners are properly guided. Its effectiveness depends on learners' prior knowledge, the domain, and their relationship. In a previous study we developed an Experiment Design Tool (EDT) guiding learners in designing experiments. The EDT significantly benefited low prior knowledge learners. For…

There has been a movement across South Africa's education sector to widen access and participation in higher education. Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) (or Prior Learning Assessment (PLA)) programmes offer an opportunity to do so by providing access to higher education to those who do not necessarily have the prerequisite requirements. Many…

This study attempts to fill the gap in the digital badging literature through uncovering faculty members' perceptions of digital badges designed for professional development purposes. It also explores faculty experiences in a digital badging program offered at a university in the United States and attempts to identify the factors contributing to…

AB 1705 requires colleges to validate their math placement policies and associated enrollment practices to ensure that students begin in coursework that gives them the best chance of completing the initial transfer-level math requirements for their academic goal. If students are required to enroll in prerequisite coursework prior to the…

Acid-base chemistry is a foundational concept for organic chemistry, and the complexities in teaching and learning acid-base chemistry are well documented. This study aimed to investigate post-secondary instructors' pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) for teaching acid-base chemistry in an organic chemistry context. Two groups of three graduate…

The attention deserved to the recognition of qualifications (degrees) and competencies acquired elsewhere, as a means for equity and inclusion in education has progressively influenced educational research and also educational policy and decision-making. Different European countries, agreeing with the importance of valorising informal learning,…

Background: Engineering-oriented bridge programs and camps are popular strategies for broadening participation. The students who often serve as counselors and mentors in these programs are integral to their success. Purpose: Predicated on the belief that mentoring contributes to positive outcomes for the mentors themselves, we sought to understand…

In numerical cognition research, the operational momentum (OM) phenomenon (tendency to overestimate the results of addition and/or binding addition to the right side and underestimating subtraction and/or binding it to the left side) can help illuminate the most basic representations and processes of mental arithmetic and their development. This…

Little evidence is available regarding the differential impact of reading versus reading and writing on multiple source comprehension. The present study aims to: (1) compare the inferential comprehension performance of students in reading versus reading/synthesis conditions; (2) explore the impact of performing the tasks on paper versus on screen…

New perspectives on executive functions propose a greater involvement of context. These perspectives have implications for research in mathematical cognition. We tackle the problem that although individuals clearly exercise inhibitory control in mathematical contexts, researchers find that the relations between inhibitory control and mathematics…

Background & Aims: Cognitive load theory assumes that the higher the learner's prior knowledge (i.e., the more expert the learner), the lower the intrinsic cognitive load (complexity) experienced for a given problem. While this is the case in many scenarios, there can be cases in which the converse is also true, resulting in more expert…